


The Things That Bind Us

by gladheonsleeps



Series: unbound [1]
Category: Mary Poppins (1964), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Cinderella AU, Cinderella Elements, Darcy Lewis & Tony Stark Friendship, Darcy Lewis is a magical being of nebulous description, Darcy is Mary Poppins great niece, F/M, Good!Loki, He Really Should Know Better, Professor Loki, Witch!Darcy, but she is magical, domestic magic, he's a good dude, internships are bad, kitchen magic, possibly fae?, questionable decisions Thor, seriously he's not even of any questionable morals in this, seriously they're bad for everyone it's a horrible system, so whichever you choose
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-08
Updated: 2017-07-16
Packaged: 2018-11-11 06:39:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 13,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11142924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gladheonsleeps/pseuds/gladheonsleeps
Summary: Loki is visiting his brother in London when he finds that Thor and Jane are hiding something from him. as he seeks to solve the mystery of his usually guileless brother's odd behavior Loki finds himself growing more than attached to the mysterious presence he could swear is living with the two lovers in a crammed apartment in London.when he and the owner of the curious magic finally meet face to face... well magic might just be the word for it.tasertricks Cinderella AU





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> so I wrote this in response to [this](http://thomassanders.com/post/161460086013) post on tumblr and what was supposed to be a funny little ficlet turned into a thing. a slightly angsty thing from mostly loki's pov for some reason. 
> 
> but anyway I hope you like it x

 Loki sighed, slowly climbing the stairs to Jane Foster’s lab, utterly exhausted. Despite his godly status among the mortals, flying cabin visit his brother and not even _one_ of his incredibly rich or magical colleagues was able to lend him their more efficient modes of transportation as they were busy this weekend; despite doing it himself all the time Strange had refused to let him use a doorway for a personal visit. Loki rolled his eyes, not that he wanted to owe Strange any favours at the end of the day. Besides, it did him good to get out amongst the mortals. He wasn’t sure specifically how but he was sure it did. It sounded like something Proff Xavier would tell him anyhow. But then who was Loki fooling, it was times like this he missed his magic the most. Sure he had skills a plenty from all the study he’d partaken in over the years and he was hardly averse to hard work but he missed his magic with every breath he took and every movement he made that wasn’t imbued with its usual power. Norns he missed it. It was like missing a limb.

As he finally reached the top floor of the building and the entrance to Thor’s paramour’s mother’s penthouse apartment he gave the door a quick rap with his knuckles as was the humans’ custom for alerting someone to their arrival at their abode. It was rather odd and mundane form of communication, but he supposed it worked well enough. As he waited for admittance he heard the harried whispers of someone who had something to hide in a hurry. He rolled his eyes, wondering what disaster Thor was trying to hide from his brother’s gaze this time. Surely he’d grown out of adopting wild creatures by now... perhaps he had taken a lover other than Dr Foster? Loki chuckled to himself as that wasn’t very likely either. Thor hadn’t often been unfaithful in the past but that had only been because he’d never committed to anyone in the first place. However his commitment to the bright and lively scientist wasn’t to be questioned for all it was unprecedented. No, cheating wasn’t it, besides that was clearly Dr Foster’s voice on the other side of the door....

He was still mulling over amusing possibilities when the door was opened and Thor and Jane stood smiling up at him guilelessly with nary a hair out of place. Loki raised his eyebrows at their cherubic expressions but smiled and withstood their hugs patiently as if he hadn’t heard their frantic scurrying a moment ago. Even so, he surreptitiously peered around at the chic apartment that Dr Foster had filled to the brim with equipment that was more often than not handmade, and most certainly hobbled together with all consideration taken with utility and absolutely none whatsoever with aesthetics.

It was clear that Dr Foster had little mind or inclination towards tidiness or order, and yet her lab and the apartment around it was almost gleaming with cleanliness. All her notes were stacked neatly and clearly had a unique and practical system of colour coding in varying stages of archival; again quite different to the Dr Foster Loki had worked with in Stark’s lab on the odd occasion. She wrote everything down in a messy scrawl, mostly in a notebook kept on her person for the purpose but occasionally on anything nearby including napkins, take out menus or once Loki even saw her notes written on a swathe of _toilet tissue_.

Loki screwed up his nose at the memory but supposed not everyone had an interdimensional pocket to store their various notebooks and other paper goods, available to use whenever they needed it. of course right at that moment, neither did Loki. Magic was of course entirely useful for keeping things ordered and tidy, but even without it Loki managed to keep his notes and life in order.

He thought instead that this tidiness must be due to Jane’s famed devoted assistant who, for all he had heard about her from several different sources he had never met.

She was often referred to with varying degrees of awe that she was a ‘worker of magic’, as humans were want to slap the term on anything they couldn't comprehend or things simply beyond their own abilities. Apparently she was so good at her job that various colleagues of Jane’s that he had met had said that a significant part of the woman’s success was due to poaching an intern from the lecture halls of political science and never letting her go back to study or statecraft, instead she traveled the world with the astrophysicist as she attempted to build an Einstein-Rosen bridge from the ground up when not saving the world from creatures such as himself- on his rather bad days at any rate. But that was beside the point. Loki was quite aware of Dr Foster's talents and capabilities when it came to science. The fact that she had accelerated her research the the point she had was due of course to a lucky run in with his brother at an opportune time, as well as having someone within her employ who was able to do the admin that was essential to move anything forward in this world of  scientific journals, grants and never ending paperwork.

As well as the general tidiness of the place which he supposed shouldn’t arouse quite as much suspicion as it did there was a pleasant scent of rose and lemon in the air that he associated with neither Thor or his paramour and a pleasant tingling of his skin that he could _swear_ was magic. Loki eventually shrugged. It was hard to determine these things with his own talents locked away. Perhaps Jane’s mother was a hearth witch, she was the owner of this abode after all; it made sense that there would be layers of her magic all over the place. Though he had no idea why Jane wouldn’t have told him.  

He brushed it aside and smiled his thanks as his diminutive host passed him a cup of coffee. He took a sip and winced -inwardly of course so as not to offend her; though to be quite honest there was next to no chance that she wasn’t already aware her coffee tasted like it was four days old and warmed with a blow torch. He tried the biscuit sitting on a plate on the coffee table and it was so good he almost forgot about the coffee. He narrowed his eyes. “I didn’t know you baked, Dr Foster?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kittens! thank you so much for the lovely response to the first chapter! I'm going to try to have a casual posting schedule of a chapter every 2 to 3 days and there are around 17 chapters if I don't add any extra. I think I like the story as it is so I think it's more likely that I'll just continue to polish as I go. 
> 
> anyway here is more Loki <3

Early the next morning Loki startled awake from his usual nightmare. He had barely shifted in a habit born of his experiences living in far more dangerous climes. Despite his outward stillness his heart thudded dangerously in his chest and Loki fought to school his breathing to help slow it down as he worked to empty his mind of the horrific images that felt glued to the back of his eyelids, waiting for him whenever he closed them.

His time with Thanos may have been years ago now but that didn’t stop the Titan’s promises of retribution for Loki’s spectacular turn about and collaboration with the humans from plaguing his every unguarded thought. He finally got his heart rate down and he quietly listened to the sleeping apartment. While outwardly he stared at the ceiling of Thor and Jane’s small but comfortable guest room, the sweat from his anxious thoughts cooling in the night air.

He _was_ _safe_. Funnily enough the sound of Thor’s snores and the magical hum of Mjolnir’s magic from the other room where quite reassuring in the dead of night; knowing that he and Mjolnir were so close put some part of him that was somehow still present from when he was a boy felt that nothing bad could happen while Thor was near, despite all of his experiences to the contrary.

Loki climbed out of bed and put on a robe, padding silently through the living areas and into the kitchen to see if Jane stocked any herbal teas. Indeed she did. As unlikely as the delicious homemade biscuits the woman had served -biscuits that he could have sworn were made with magic- Loki discovered a range of clearly labelled jars of all kinds of teas and coffees and other concoctions to be mixed into drinks. Moving aside a jar called turmeric and lavender dream tea, Loki found a larger jar of hand mixed hot chocolate powder, which he decided would be an excellent way to spend his now sleepless night hours. A sniff of the jar's contents decided him and he set about preparing it to the instructions neatly written on the label in purple ink.

As he did a thousand times a day he felt the pang of missing his magic for this kind of activity, but then again there was something really nice about the simple process of warming milk on the stove and mixing in the delicious powder that helped him find that calm he was looking for.

It was he was pouring the chocolate into a mug that he heard the greeting of a cat and felt it wind around his pyjama clad ankles. “Puurrrp”

He stared, blinking for a moment. The cat blinked back. When did Thor get a cat? Shaking his head he poured a little milk into a saucer and put it on the ground for a small treat. As the cat eagerly partook of his offering Loki crouched down and inspected the tiny Midgardian beast. “And who are you?” he looked around at the closed door to the balcony. “Where did you even come from?”

Then he shrugged. In all of his studies on Midgardian magic since he’d come here, he had read enough to tell they at the very least had some magical abilities, though the tales varied about what precisely they could do. Perhaps like everyone else they each had their own strengths and talents? It wasn’t really his business to know. 

The cat looked up and licked the milk dripping from its jaw before going back to its snack, tail waving in the air. Loki chuckled and took his hot chocolate to the sitting room, folding himself into a comfortable wing backed chair.

As he sat sipping the divine concoction that left a look of consternation on his face at the delicate flavour and the feeling of utter contentment it left him with the cat jumped onto the seat next to him before leaping into his lap and climbing to his chest where it turned its back on him as it curled up right over his heart. Loki blinked in surprise, and then chuckled as he finished his drink, reaching carefully to smooth his finger up her nose and scratch her behind her ears. The cat started purring and Loki smiled, relaxing even more with the warmth and vibration of the fluffy creature.

 

He let his eyelids fall closed once more and tried to relax, inhaling through his nose and exhaling through his mouth; the scent of the chocolate and the rose, lemon and lavender of the apartment surrounding him in a comforting embrace. Or perhaps that was the cat. Either way he was asleep in minutes.

 

When he woke again in the morning Loki realised he hadn’t dreamt anything again that night, a singularly uncommon occurrence to be sure. There was no cat to be seen but the apartment was filled with the smell of coffee and Loki heard the sounds of the couple in the other room waking.

He stood up and stretched with a yawn, took his mug from the night before and washed it in the sink before turning to the coffee pot with trepidation. On one hand perhaps Jane had snuck passed him and put it on (and ruined it) but it didn’t seem like it. He decided it was worth a gamble, pouring himself a small amount to have a taste and audibly sighed into the empty room at the flavour of perfectly brewed Midgardian elixir.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eeeep I want to curl up and sleep on Loki's chest!   
> anyway this is what Loki's new friend and sleeping pal looks like:
> 
> (my friend has a kitty who looks like this and I'm absolutely smitten!)I have another family thing tonight so I gotta dash. wish me luck!
> 
> anyway


	3. Chapter 3

It wasn’t till a few weeks after flying back from London that Loki thought about it again. He was in the middle of writing an email to Ms Potts scheduling some time for some training she’d requested when his student and part time assistant Wanda knocked on his office door. It was an improvement that she’d stopped dropping in on his mind out of laziness and sheer convenience instead of relying on general etiquette that Proff X had put in place for those of a ... broader mind than the other mortals around them.

She was his brightest and most talented student, and of course the most trouble; making mischief together with her twin though she was just as capable of causing havoc on her own. This of course only reminded him of himself in so many ways, not least the consuming anger which burned within them both, underneath the layers of magic and mischief and chaos. Thankfully Proff Xavier had helped both the girl and himself with this and they were both working thorough it at their own pace and were far better off for it.

“Something here from your brother Professor.”

He called for her to enter and raised his eyebrows and snorted at the package that was marked with runes in Thor's handwriting (describing what Loki apparently liked to do with horses) as well as Loki’s postal information scrawled in the same neat hand he’d seen on the jars of tea in Thor’s kitchen. That ruled out them having bought them from a witchy market stall or something.

He gave his assistant a smile as his thumb ran over the purple words softly. “Thank you Wanda.  I uh, I think we’re done for today. If you don’t have anything pressing to do you can head home.”

The young girl nodded and gave him a wave as she left, the door quietly closing behind her without her touch. Loki smiled reflexively. It was still completely refreshing being among people like him, even if he wasn’t able to access his powers at the moment it was lovely to be around people who didn’t see such a thing as dishonourable or cheating. If he was honest he still wasn’t over it.

He turned toward the package and chuckled when he pulled out a letter hastily scribbled down by Jane asking him a few questions about the bifrost that he was sure she'd figured out by the time the package had left English soil. There was also a small bundle wrapped in brown paper and string. He yanked on the string and carefully unwrapped it to find a small stack of those shortbread biscuits he’d enjoyed so much on his stay there.

Under it all was his favourite green hoody that he’d been missing since his weekend in London. The garment smelled pleasantly like the sheets he’d slept on and he could have sworn it wasn’t even this soft when he’d first purchased the thing two years ago. It was also missing a small hole in one of the sleeves. Someone must have cleaned and mended it for him. That was immensely kind of them.

Despite himself, Loki held it to his nose and inhaled, instantly relaxing. He pulled the hoody away and stared for a moment. It was positively _drenched_ in magic. He had been sure Thor and Jane’s apartment was practically dripping with the stuff but with the interference of Mjolnir’s rather loud presence it had been hard to tell. Here, sitting in his office without any interference it was perfectly clear. Thor was hiding something – or some _one_ and Loki had absolutely no idea why he would feel the need to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is brought to you by hoody loki/brisbane tom hiddleston, who had his own kind of magic going on <3____<3
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> I move house tomorrow yaaay! it's only temporary (6 weeks) but the house is cozy af and I hope it will be very good for my brain and my heart. I just need to get everything packed and cleaned by then eeep!
> 
> also you may have noticed that this lil fic has a teenage rating. those that have may be interested to know that I have started a follow up fic that will have the smuts rating, so do not fear! there will be smuts ahead! just not in this one <3


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Darcy's pov

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here come the sads

Darcy was having a bad day, one of those days where hard as she tried, she couldn’t smile and ignore the facts of her position and all the things she could be doing instead of washing Thor’s underwear and mending his jeans _again_. Most days were OK, but then there were days like this one. It was like her body bottled it up as much as it could but then Jane would be in a bad mood or Thor would go out and ruin another garment that she had just cleaned and repaired or trek mud all down the hallway and her poor little brain just couldn't _handle_ it anymore. 

She really needed to talk to levis or someone about some custom made reinforced pants because while the guy  looked _truly_ divine in Midgardian threads Darcy was beginning to see why all of their clothes were made of leather in Asgard- it’s so that they don’t blow out their crotch every time they so much as bend over. She growled in frustration and put the pants down. This was not the mood to do repair magic in. The threads never cam e back together quite right when her emotions weren’t calm. Cooking was way more appropriate. Something she could punch. Pizza.

She peeked into the lab part of the apartment and waited for a while till it looked like Jane was interruptable. It was an art she’d perfected over the last few years. It was useless to try to talk to her if she was deep into the science; you had to wait till she was near the surface or she literally would neither hear nor see you. Thankfully like sleep cycles there seemed to be science cycles too. 

Darcy leaned against the wall watching the woman who’d ruined her life. It all seemed so fated in hindsight. A being like Darcy was never going to be able to go into politics, they never did.

Foolishly, she’d thought she was safe. You hardly ever came across a fairy tale anymore, not real ones, they had all been written over by Disney and their cotton candy sweet stories of romance and size six dresses. They didn’t tell of fairies and what you can achieve if you manage to catch one, other than that Peter Pan bullshit. 

They also didn’t talk about the guilt that would plague your life after you had. but then maybe no one knew. Jane sure as hell didn't tell anyone, and she dyed all that grey out of her hair that stressed Thor out so much. 

 

Darcy had thought she was safe. No one even believed in magic anymore, least of all Dr Foster the astrophysicist- and thankfully _that_ little theory from Hook was totally not true; Darcy’s health was just fine despite the lack of faith in her existence all around her. 

Her great Aunt Mary had always talked about how not to get caught. _Always_ ask for payment and _always_ stipulate a time period, ensure that your help was only temporary. Mary always waited till the wind changed; so had her third cousin or what ever cousin Vianne. But things were different these days and it was pretty hard to use meteorology to base your decisions or science credits on.

Even so Darcy had made extra sure that she was getting a living allowance, which was super rare for internships. Particularly ones with wack jobs like Dr Jane Foster was kinda known around the halls of Culver for. And of course it was supposed to be temporary, but Thor had come crashing into their lives and it seemed pretty shitty to just leave Jane standing in the desert staring at the sky. 

Darcy had thought it would be OK, that it was meant to be and she had a job to do. Jane’s advertisement had come to her the normal way. It had drifted in through the window and landed right at her feet where she was perched on her bed finishing up some statistics homework. The astrophysicist must not have pinned it down properly or never actually posted it because, as was usual in the case of Darcy and her relatives, she was the only applicant.

It had gone well enough, Dr Foster was a little quirky but it wasn’t as if Darcy could talk so they got a long pretty well. And Jane never even noticed the magic. She didn’t believe in magic. also she was so lost in the science all the time, and Darcy only did the big stuff when she was out of the lab. It should have been fine.

But then Thor had to come down acting like a drunk person, and Darcy should have known he wasn’t as dumb as he looked. And you could never trust a guy who was trying to impress a girl; they would always screw you over if they thought they would get a screw out of it.

So while he sat with Jane on a rooftop staring at the sky and drawing inaccurate pictures of Yggdrasil with bonus spelling mistakes, he also told her how to catch a fairy.

Because he was just that selfish and horny.

Whenever Thor bragged about having to be worthy to be able to lift Mjolnir Darcy laughed because if that fucking hammer cared about the state of a person’s soul then it would still be out in the middle of the fucking desert and Thor would be dead, and Darcy wouldn’t be stuck here washing his boxers while his girlfriend stood scribbling equations on her whiteboard. He just said the magic words. And 24 hours later so did Jane.

Unfortunately.

 

They’d been drunk, Jane had been miserable, and she’d impulsively bound Darcy to herself as a magical slave until she built a bifrost. Like you do.

There was one thing for sure; Darcy had never touched tequila since.

 

And it wasn’t that she didn’t love Jane, she did. Since that night they’d become even closer if it was possible, and who was to say that Darcy wouldn’t have stuck around anyway? But the complexities of magical binding meant that if Jane accidentally phrased something the wrong way Darcy had no freedom to disobey her, no control over her own magic or body, which sucked in the worst kinds of ways; and Jane was so lost in her world that she rarely noticed the pain her little fairy was in.

Darcy rolled her eyes and wiped them, dashing her useless tears away. There was no point in dwelling on it. The best way forward was to do whatever she could to help make the bridge and her freedom happen quicker.

“Boss lady?” she called and Jane looked up. “What do you want for dinner?”

“Oh. Actually did I tell you that Loki is coming over for dinner tonight? He’s here for a conference so he won’t stay long but he’ll be popping by to see Thor tonight.”

Darcy looked at the time; it was nearing four pm, because Jane couldn’t _possibly_ have let her know earlier. She suppressed a sigh it was going to take magic. “Cool. What do you want me to make?”

“I hear he likes Italian? We could order pizza if you don’t want to cook?” 

Darcy shrugged. “I’ll make pizza. It will be better.” She definitely needed to punch something. She liked making dough. It helped with the stress. And it wasn’t like she didn’t get to eat it-

Jane’s face was cautious. “You know you’ve got to hide, right?”

Damn it. Darcy had forgotten. Well she hadn’t completely forgotten her night curled up on Loki’s chest during that weekend she’d had to sneak around like a ghost. When he’d gotten up in the middle of the night she almost hadn’t transformed in time and risked discovery and Thor's disappointed face. 

It had kind of been worth it to see how much he liked her secret chocolate recipe though, and he’d been comfortable and warm and had soft shiny hair, which in her cat form was like, the best thing ever. Of course she still had her own brain and magic while being a cat, but comfort and warmth were just like, a really high priority. 

She shouldn’t _have_  to hide or be in cat form, sneaking about in her own home except that Thor had this _thing_... “Why can’t I meet Loki? What are you so afraid of?” Darcy had her guesses of course.

Darcy could see the guilt in the other woman’s eyes and her heart fell. It was no use fighting it. Thor was convinced that Loki would get in a huff over Darcy’s binding. He already apparently disagreed about the wisdom of humans making a bifrost in the first place. Apparently he said they’d be attracting the kinds of trouble they totally weren’t ready for- especially as he had no magic at the moment to help out if shit went sideways, which had certainly happened already once or twice where Jane was involved. She was mostly OK but sometimes she got a little crazy professor vibes and forgot to have any self preservation. Or any Darcy preservation either, because why would she? Darcy had to admit the dude had a point.

And if the things Darcy had overheard were true he kind of knew what he was talking about when it came to big bad scary things. Darcy knew a little bit about that too; or at least she knew about the things that go bump in the night _on earth_. She supposed the things that came through a bifrost might be even worse because they were hiding under the beds that _planets_ went to sleep on, living in the corners and folds and shadows of space.

Darcy shuddered at the thought. “It’s fine, it’s whatever. I’ll make up some pizzas and you can bake them when it’s time.” Or at least Thor could. Jane would probably set the kitchen on fire if she tried.

Jane gave her a distracted smile of thanks and turned back to her work. Because that was a thing. There was nothing like science to distract you from the fact that you had a magical slave tied to your life and your every whim.

Darcy sighed again. The thing was, at heart Jane wasn’t a bad person. As soon as she’d seen her own words burned into Darcy’s skin her fervour for science had doubled, tripled and it wasn’t about Thor’s princely dick anymore. Or at least mostly it wasn’t. And she tried to keep the Thor stuff till the weekends, though she wasn’t always successful. But that was understandable. Darcy had seen Thor’s dick once accidentally and she could admit it was very distracting, and he wasn’t even Darcy’s type. Once she’d seen Jane talking to Steve Rogers and she had realised that Jane _definitely_  had a type, and that Thor was like, the best in the genre so to speak.

But distractions aside Jane was working her ass off to free Darcy; she just had little to no empathy which wasn’t her fault, it just made it really hard for Darcy sometimes.

She sighed and moved to the kitchen and clicked her fingers, her magic collecting all the mugs and plates and cutlery that had been stacked up and washing them. At least she wasn’t stuck doing the work manually; she had quite a few tricks up her sleeves to help her get through the day. And these days she didn’t even need to hide it from Jane.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this fic makes Thor and Jane out to be the villainous-ish character _again_ but I do actually like them I swear to god but Cinderella has to have evil step mother and step sisters type characters and this was the way I did it. the in laws. sorry but not really. 
> 
> also for those interested my move has been amazing and I'm in a very lovely cozy place with two cats and two lovely housemates (one of whom is a dear friend) and the nights have been cold but in a kind of delicious way (I like to have ten thousand blankets on my bed so I'm toasty af!) and my days have been a lil crazy and I'm already broke but have enough for rent and food in the pantry (starting a pantry again is so expensive!) but today I was able to just potter about and drink strong tea with honey in it and it was nice. also, fic!


	5. Chapter 5

Loki sat staring at nothing, meditating on the flow of magic through Jane Foster's apartment. Thor had bumped into Tony stark somewhere in town and had invited him along to dinner this evening which Loki had to admit was a good thing as he was finding himself rather lacking in conversation, given the distraction he was prone to at the moment.

He was, of course not trying to be a bad house guest; he was genuinely endeavouring to keep up with Tony Stark and Dr Foster’s conversation about a controversial article in Scientific American’s last issue but the feeling of being surrounded by so much delicious magic while without his own was completely overwhelming.

It was _crazy_ that Mjolnir had been able to mask it on his last visit with the intensely fresh scent of rose, lemon and lavender layered thickly around the apartment and flowing through the very air around him. After so long without his own or his mother’s comforting spells in his vicinity Loki was having an unexpectedly emotional response.

It had been particularly interesting when he’d felt a concentration of the stuff over near the balcony just after they'd arrived and he could have _sworn_ at that moment there had been another person in the room but that feeling had passed and Thor had arrived home with Mjolnir, and Loki almost regretted the weapon’s presence as she once again partially masked the other magic.

It was certainly puzzling. He took a sip of his beer and tuned back into the conversation where Jane and Tony were gossiping about an acquaintance’s affair with a student while Thor moved about in the kitchen, putting some delicious looking pizzas in the oven. Loki suppressed a shudder. The thought of carrying on such with Wanda or any of his other students was _incredibly_ disturbing. The trust relationship between magical tutor and student was particularly necessary for the safety of all involved but he couldn’t believe that other student teacher relationships were all that different, and from Jane and Tony’s response he saw that it was indeed looked down upon on Midgard.

He did feel quite overprotective of his students, even having to rein it in sometimes, such as the time when Wanda first started dating one of the boys at the school. His first impulse had been to threaten the poor kid. He was long past that now but at that time he’d still been fairly fresh from his experiences with Thanos and a little more inclined to violence.

Even so he still had to suppress the urge to go and visit this man’s house and teach him a lesson about a teacher’s sacred responsibilities.

His thoughts were thankfully interrupted by Thor, who announced with no little pride that it was time for their meal.

 

The food was _divine_. Conversation went a little slower as even Jane was distracted by the delicious meal laid out before them. It was as they were digging into the final course of a pie that rivaled those served from Asgard’s royal kitchen that Loki asked who he was to thank for the amazing meal.

“I baked it.” Thor replied proudly and Loki tipped his head taking in his brother’s guileless face as he told the half truth. Loki had seen Thor putting the pie in the oven it was true, but he had very little skill with compiling even a loaf of bread, let alone delicate buttery pastry, or the kind of flavour profile that a starred Michelin chef would be jealous of.

Loki swiped a bit of whipped cream from his plate and licked it from his thumb. There was apple and vanilla of course and caramel and rose in there as well as something else he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Someone other than Thor had made their meal, and Thor, for some reason was hiding it.

Tony piped up with a bark of laughter, confirming Loki’s suspicion. “Yeah, I’m _sure_ you did Point Break. _Speaking_ _of_ Cinderella, where is she?”

Loki was distracted by the cat he’d met on his last visit twirling around his legs under the table. Once again he had absolutely no idea when or how she had come in. He bent to pick it up and scratch her under the chin. She pressed her head into his hands and he chuckled. 

Jane suddenly looked defensive, looking at the cat and back at her guest. “She’s not called _Cinderella_ Tony” She said sharply. Loki raised his eyebrow at her tone the cat climbed onto his shoulder and perched there.

“No, you’re right you don’t have a fireplace; more like ‘Mozzarella’ amirite?” Tony grinned at his own joke, pointing to the leftover pizzas on the bench.

Jane huffed, her face looking hurt. “It’s not like that!”

Tony grew serious. “Foster you know how it is. If you came to work at Stark industries you can be on the books and she can get paid! She could have health insurance! Sick leave! We even do menstrual leave these days if women need it and I know hers hit her hard. We even have amazing dental! There’s absolutely no reason why she should still be called an intern four years after she was supposed to graduate! What’s the hold up?”

Jane grew angry and stood up. “You _know_ why we can’t do that Tony! I’ve worked _way_ _too hard_ for all of the credit to go to you or one of your male employees who suddenly decides he wants the glory. And you _still_ sell stuff to Coulson and his people even after all that shit with HYDRA. You’re my friend and I admire your work but I’m _not_ letting my life’s work get coopted by weapons manufacturers. This is about _science_ and _exploration_ not some warmonger’s thirst for power.” She reached out and snatched the cat from Loki’s shoulder, yanking hard when she stuck her claws into his sweater in protest. She opened the door to the balcony and threw it outside, locking the door when she closed it. The cat stared balefully in through the glass and Loki raised his eyebrows, puzzled.

Stark looked offended but Thor put his hand on the smaller man’s shoulder. “Tony you know this is a topic the two of you shall ever disagree on, let us not fight.”

Loki sat watching it all, his finger on his lips. This whole conversation had the markings of an argument that had been had countless times, and yet Loki had never heard of it. Particularly the part where Foster wasn’t paying her assistant.

Even so he leaned forward and brought up a different topic as Thor got up and made some coffee. While it wasn’t anything to the cup he’d had on that morning last time he was here, it was certainly better than Jane’s attempts at caffeinated rocket fuel.

 

Later that evening Loki was coming back from a visit to the amenities when he heard Tony and Thor arguing once more. “Thor you know how I feel on this. Just let me pay her wages even if you’re not signed on. You know I can afford to pay her under the table from my personal accounts. Or I could get her a credit card. I’m going to have Pepper send her a credit card.”

Thor sighed, rubbing at his temples. “Tony I don’t know how else to explain it. She has a wardrobe full of gowns and clothes made by the finest craftspeople in the nine realms and has everything she could ever need supplied to her. Darcy is like family to me, to Jane. She won’t hear of taking any money, believe me I have tried. You think my personal fortune is any less than yours?”

Tony growled in frustration and Thor once again put his hand on his friend’s shoulders. “She is as stubborn as any of us are. Let her make her own choices.” Tony couldn’t see because he looked away in frustration but Loki saw something cross Thor’s face as he spoke. His brother was lying.

Loki could see that Tony would have liked to continue the conversation but he stepped out from the shadows as if he hadn’t been listening in. “Are you ready to go? The plane is scheduled to leave soon.”

Tony waved him off, “Yeah yeah but it’s my plane, what are they gonna do, take off without us?”

Thor laughed jovially and made them wait while he packed up some boxes of food to take with them on the flight. Tony didn’t even try to refuse and neither did Loki. Tony might have his own skilled cook on the jet but that meal had been _incredible_. As they moved towards the door Loki looked back over the apartment and took one last deep breath of the magical air.

Whoever this mysterious assistant that had been referred to as ‘Cinderella’ was, Loki was going to find out. If Thor thought he could hide something from his brother he was _entirely_ mistaken. But the most curious thing was why on earth he thought he had to hide anything in the first place.


	6. Chapter 6

Loki stopped by his favourite bookstore once he was home and in possession of some free time. This particular store was of interest because its proprietors were undoubtedly magic users. Loki already spent a significant amount of time reading, learning all that Midgard had to teach him and so it was no surprise to the shop keep when he came in inquiring on domestic magic and anything related to it.

And while he’d brought home a stack of books on the subject he was kept busy with work and trips to Asgard to sit in diplomatic meetings and continue his duties as prince of the realm that for some reason still existed despite his horrific behaviour several years ago in attempting genocide. One would think Asgard would be a little more upset about it but he supposed that as Jotenheim was worth so little to his countrymen they simply didn’t care.

What they _did_ care about was that the bifrost had been damaged and in the time it took to build a new one quite a number of petty warlords had attempted to take ground whilst Asgard was unable to stop them.

Thankfully the damage wasn’t too extensive though Thor’s friend Hogun had to return home to his village in Vanaheim to help repair the damage wrought. Loki was happy to guide him through the ways if it meant that he could spend an afternoon with the man’s grandmother, who was a wise woman of considerable power and even more knowledge.

Loki lent his own skills to the problem of those skirmishes, lobbying for funding to help those affected while Thor himself aided the realms with skills of a more physical kind. Loki was humbled that his older brother felt any responsibility at all for the destruction of the bifrost and had to admit that at last Thor was growing to see the consequences of his actions.

 While their citizens and even their parents seemed to see those events during their father’s Odinsleep as an unfortunate blip and could easily forget in the face of keeping the status quo, both Loki and Thor were irrevocably changed, and they both felt heavier for it. They never really spoke on the subject but it was clear they were both aware of it, even in their choice to spend most of their time on Midgard with the mortals who had so much to teach them about growth and change.

It was this decision above all that caused their father upset. He was nonplussed at their desire to stay with those they’d bonded with in their fight against Thanos but he was even more bewildered and disappointed with Thor’s romantic attachment to a mortal.

Loki knew Thor had been toying with the thought of giving up his heirship and he had to admit that he totally understood. As things sat at present he felt absolutely no desire for the throne. After he’d realised there was no pleasing his father –a subject that had Loki and Tony Stark bonding over tumblers of whiskey early in their friendship- he had let go of the need to prove himself. Instead he only returned to Asgard to see his adopted mother and to help where he could to help move the people of Asgard and the nine realms forward in any way he could.

It was upon returning from one such trip that Loki stepped away from the rune marks now permanently imprinted on the lawn of Professor Xavier’s mansion and headed towards his rooms slowly. As he was passing the entertainment lounge he was distracted by the sound of cheerful singing. He stopped in the doorway as his eyes caught various domestic objects flying through the air and righting themselves at the behest of the woman on the screen. “What is this?” He asked, and one of the students laughed at his usual ignorance of Midgardian classics.

“This is Mary Poppins.” They answered and Loki raised his eyebrows leaning against the doorway and watching the delightful characters. Despite it clearly being a movie for children Loki found himself remaining there until the credits were rolling. Seeing him still in the doorway a few of his students asked him if it at was realistic or possible, magic like Ms Poppins’. Their eyes were bright with humour but he knew their curiosity was serious.

“You know, I have a feeling it is more realistic than we know. If I ever figure it out I’ll let you know.”

They were delighted enough with his answer that a few weeks later at least one of them had managed to perfect the art of slowing his fall to the earth in the air with the aid of an umbrella when dropped from a height by one of the students who could fly. Loki had no doubt he’d turn it into flying in no time, and that others would pick it up after that. They were quite brilliant after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> <3 <3 <3


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a spoon full of sugar etc

Darcy was returning home from the store, arms laden with groceries when she saw Thor carrying a massive and quite unconscious body up the stairs, black hair spilling like ink from a ridiculous helmet that was sure to have damaged a wall or two on the way up. She quickly unlocked the door and got out of the way, groceries hovering at her elbow as Thor manoeuvred his way to the spare bedroom and placed the person down with great care.

“Darcy, thank the Norns you are here. Do you have any remedies to ease pain and to clean wounds?” Darcy blinked, realising she had been staring.

“Uh, yeah. I do. What do you want to do about- are those burns?” Thor had frozen for a second and Darcy could see that mentioning the very blue elephant in the room wasn't the wisest path to take right now. Parts of Thor's cape were badly singed but his brother was clearly a lot worse for wear, and without access to his magic it was all his body could do to hold itself together. She was about to offer to help in that avenue but Thor preempted her.

“Worry not. Though my brother does not have access to his magic he still heals at the normal rate. Well- normal for our kind.” Darcy raised her eyebrows at that. Clearly they weren’t the same ‘kind’ after all. “If you could prepare something to wash the wounds with I can tend him. And something to ease his sleep would also help greatly.” Darcy nodded, though she hesitated. Thor sighed. “I still would prefer for you not to meet him sister. He would not understand and I’m afraid what would happen if he knows.”

Darcy raised her hands to show submission and moved to her tiny potions lab and pulled out some ingredients. As she worked she could see Thor watching her with guilt all over his face but he didn’t change his mind. He took the bowl of steaming herbal wash and closed the door in her face.

A while later he emerged again, and asked her for the other potion, not letting her past his bulking mass for all she tried to get around him. she clicked her tongue in annoyance and frustration. “Thor! Its not- Look it’s going to help him sleep deeper anyway so he can heal quicker, I just need to use my magic to make it work properly. Just trust me? Go for a shower or something, I _promise_ I won’t wake him.”

Thor hesitated but eventually nodded, finally leaving her alone with his brother. Darcy stood clutching her tools and watching the beautiful man’s chest rise and fall slowly for awhile, watching as some of his wounds slowly healed over right before her eyes. She could see that Thor had done a good job at least stripping him and cleaning his burns, from what she could see with the sheet pulled up to his waist anyway.

When she heard the shower start in the bathroom next-door she started and realised she’d been staring again. He _was_ beautiful though, and all that skin on display was doing things for her.

Loki groaned a little and Darcy remembered he was in pain.

She sighed and swore under her breath and placed an earthen bowl full of herbal steaming liquid on a table next to the bed for him to breathe in to help him get a nice deep, healing sleep. the bowl was spelled to stay warm and keep the steam coming. Next she stroked his hair carefully away from his face, remarking at the cooler temperature of his skin in this form. He shifted slightly in his sleep and Darcy stilled her movements with her hand still in his hair. She stoked him with her thumb, soothing between his brows and up his forehead and he scrunched his face at the contact before relaxing, his long eyelashes fluttering as he started breathing even deeper. As he stilled Darcy realised she’d been holding her breath. She huffed a laugh at herself and finished her ministrations, drenching a cloth and folding it in half, filling it with herbs and placing it over his eyes and forehead as a compress, using her magic to activate her spells.

She stepped back and watched as his body incrementally relaxed. At least he didn’t snore like Thor did, she noticed. She was just about to leave when a thought occurred to her.

If Odin didn’t want Loki to be blue then he might have left a tiny bit of magic in order to keep his Aesir form... which his body might be using currently to heal, reverting him back to his jotun skin? She was just about to touch his hand to see if she was right when Thor came back into the room looking pissy.

“That is quite enough, Darcy. I thank you but you should go. I will tend him now.”

Darcy crossed her arms at the stubborn prince and motioned towards Loki. “By the way you’re acting _so_ _shifty_  one could assume that he won’t like being seen like _this_.” she waved her had dramatically over the sleeping prince.

Thor looked even more uncomfortable and Darcy huffed, shifting form, her fur bristling in irritation at Thor’s lack of practicality. She leapt onto the bed, tail stiff in the air as she carefully walked onto the  unwounded part of Loki's chest. This would have been _way_ easier in human form but she could still be able to do it with paws, it would just take more concentration. She placed them over his heart where she could feel it beating and paused, curious. the heartbeat was far slower but stronger in this form. She shrugged it off and carefully fed magic into his skin. She didn’t want to give him too much just in case Odin had put a booby trap there if Loki tried to circumvent his rule. But if she fed him just the right amount...

Slowly, slowly she fed him magic and eventually his skin shifted over. Which was _far_ better as far as she was concerned. He was just as cute while blue but she didn’t care about that when she was a cat, she only cared about warms.

Thor glared at her for a while and she glared right back over her shoulder in a way that only a cat can but in the end his stomach was gurgling with post battle munchies and he left in a huff.

Darcy snorted at Asgardian weirdness and  followed shortly after he left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

 

The next day when she was stripping the bed after Loki’s departure a small note fell out of the pillow case. The handwriting was impeccably neat and the paper was the same amazing stuff Thor brought back from Asgard sometimes. On it was written just one sentence. “I don’t know who you are, but thank you.”

Darcy stared at the green ink for a while, realising she was crying. Why did a stranger’s thanks mean more than Thor and Jane’s multiple thank yous a day?

She didn’t know, but she did know that something in her heart thawed a little with the gesture. She wiped her eyes and pocketed the note, carrying on with her chores with a lighter step.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> gods I am such a mess for injured blue loki. no kisses this time unfortunate. just magic toebeans.
> 
>  
> 
> yesterday I didn't eat enough food and remembered why I'm so very obsessively meticulous about my eating schedule. omg. 
> 
> blood sugar is so important. 
> 
> it's so crazy how consistently we as humans forget why it is we do the things we need to do, right? we just forget because the bad thing hasn't happened for so long and get lax and then all the sudden we're weeping by the side of the road while waiting for a bus because someone said something mildly homophobic (which for the record happens a lot in australia) and you just have no energy to block it out and it just gets you in the feelings...
> 
> anyway all of this was to say please look after yourselves and I love you and also that fic was a very good friend to me yesterday. and if you need a fic that is as cozy as the soft electric blanket I needed to chase the low blood sugar shivers away yesterday then I would recommend [Just a Cover](http://archiveofourown.org/works/3340874/chapters/7307243) by PinkPandorafrog because it is very very nice and the thought of cuddles with fitz was so comforting. 
> 
> oh and look at the photo I just found. thank you fitz. 
> 
> anyway back to tasertricks goodness...


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we are nearing the crux of this tale <3  
> I hope this finds you well

Loki walked through the halls of Asgard's vast palace near blindly; trying to still his sense of panic and foreboding at the summons he had just received. He had just returned from the site of one of his projects and had been summoned to Odin’s study without a reason or explanation.

It had been one Midgardian year since Loki had packed up his office and left his students and co-workers at Professor Xavier’s school and traveled back to Asgard to oversee a larger scale project that had really needed his full attention.

Odin had finally granted him back his magic, an excruciating process with pain that had been unlike anything he had ever experienced before as his magic seeped back into every cell and pore of his body. He suppose the pain made sense, like the pins and needles one felt when they cut off circulation to a limb and then allowed it to flood back again.

After two days of agony he was whole and hearty once more and able to better carry out his duties overseeing the building of a new place of healing outside of the palace. Loki had been lobbying for this for something like a hundred years so being able to see it done was incredibly fulfilling and even worth his extended absence from his friends on Midgard. Some, such as Wanda and Tony, who even felt like family by now.

Wanda. though she still had much to learn was no longer a child and at the very least was able to control her powers now without any danger to herself or those around her. It had been time to step away and see how she did without him hovering over her all the time. He did check in with Heimdall often however and could never help but be proud of his student when he heard reports of her various exploits and achievements.

Despite all he’d achieved and the amount he’d grown since he’d found out about his origins so long ago, when Odin called him to his study Loki had felt utterly nervous, like he was 200 again and had been caught putting frogs in Sif’s boots.

But then, that was probably what Odin was going for. Though they’d learned to work together since their altercation that fateful night, putting their personal issues aside for the good of the realm, Loki had never again felt like he could call Odin 'Father' or completely forgive him for leaving him on his own while he was freshly reeling after he had ripped the bottom out from Loki’s world, his entire identity shattered.

Despite all of this going through his mind he allowed none of it to show on his face as quietly he entered the sunlit room and sat in front of Odin’s desk after kissing his mother’s cheek.

Odin’s face was impassive. “Loki. We have much to discuss.”

...

As Loki left the room and somehow stumbled back to his apartments he felt as if he was made of ice and he would shatter into a thousand pieces.

He moved through the rooms blindly, not even seeing or hearing the concern of his staff as he passed them. He found his most private bedchamber and closed himself in; sliding down the door to the ground once the locks and wards were in place.  

For some reason utterly unknown to Loki, Odin had once again made him heir, and intended to make him regent while he attended to some errands in the greater galaxy for quite some time.

To say that Loki was in shock would be an understatement. What the _fuck_ was he going to do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ruh roh


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I know I only just posted the last chapter a little less than a day ago but these next few chaps are all quite small and I don't want you to have to wait too long between them so I'll try to get them out when I can.

Darcy inhaled the pleasant smell of popcorn and sighed, stretching her hands above her head while gazing out of the floor to ceiling windows at the glittering city. Tonight was her night off and she was in New York and she was going to spend it watching as many episodes of firefly as she could before she fell asleep. She brought her bowl of scrumptious buttery goodness into the home theater that for some ungodly reason Tony stark had felt it necessary to furnish his guest suite with and turned on the TV. She was just singing along to the opening song when she heard a husky “I don’t _think_ so” from behind her.

Darcy started, throwing popcorn into the air in surprise. With a growl she clicked her fingers and the kernels hastily returned to their place in their bowl. Darcy looked up and narrowed her eyes at the two redheads standing in her doorway. “What do you mean 'you don’t think so'?”

Natasha Romanoff raised her eyebrows and Pepper Potts smiled. ‘Tonight is the biggest party this decade and you are _not_ going to spend it alone watching TV.”

“But I won’t be alone! I’ve got Mal, and Zoe and Wash and Kalee...” she trailed off as the two intimidating women shook their heads.

“They’ll be there if you want to come back later but I planned this party to within an inch of its life and I don’t want to be there if you aren’t!” Pepper wailed and Darcy couldn’t refuse her pout.

She sighed. “OK fine.”

Natasha grabbed a handful of popcorn as she passed her on her way out the door. “Good decision. You should see the costume we got you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> when I wrote this fic it was all at once in one day, sort of this spurt of inspiration that was super great and it was a really nice day of writing. 
> 
> It's also the first time I've really written something with the kind of mystery element to it, especially that I've broken up like this and posted piece by piece and I realised while I have been editing and publishing the chapters just how much of an emotive writer I am in that a lot of how I write is tying to speak and communicate from an experiential aspect. so with this I realised I was trying to get their cluelessness and emotions and experiences across and though we have the slight benefit of having both of their povs we're still lacking a lot of information because Jane and Thor are keeping them both in the dark. 
> 
> I don't know how successful this has been, because everyone seems to have lots of questions. I suppose I am unsure whether this is everyone showing their piqued curiosity or whether they are genuinely confused and I haven't given you as the reader enough information so in a rare kind of limited time only thing I would like to ask for some con crit for this one. please still be kind as I'm disabled and trying my best but if you could let me know at the end of this story how you felt reading it and if this sort of thing was successful that would be great. thanks!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my darlings, thank you all so much for your feedback it was so lovely to know we were all on the same page <3
> 
> while this one is written in totally unreliable narration I really do want to do a follow up that unpacks stuff a little after this fic. I was hoping it would be as instantaneous as this fic but it is taking my usual sort of timing so don't hold your breath, but it does exist and we do get to stay in this universe for a little longer yay :)

For Loki’s last night on Midgard as a prince of minimal responsibilities Loki would have far preferred a casual meal with friends or at most a few drinks at a bar. Instead Tony had decided it was essential to throw a gala type evening and make it a hundred fold worse by making it a masquerade. “Come on Lokes, you have to let me do this for the hundreds of women out there who now think they have a chance to hook up with the Crown Prince of Asgard! You don’t even have to be the one they’re hooking up with! You just have to make it a possibility!”

Loki narrowed his eyes at Tony who was _without a doubt_ up to something. He could tell there was no way he was getting out of this. He rolled his eyes and gave in. “Fine.”

 

...

 

The night of was bearable he supposed. He had never truly enjoyed this kind of occasion but he had enough of his friends there that he managed to enjoy himself well enough. He even allowed Wanda and a few others to pull him onto the dance floor and managed to avoid being snatched up by strange women out to find some quality time with a prince of Asgard. He had been skilfully avoiding _that_ kind of attention for centuries by now after all, though the people of Midgard were particularly less proprietous than he was used to he still managed OK. His ass may have some bruises from pinching fingers but that was all.  

There was one woman he would have loved to hold close to him and breathe in the scent of her hair, which was an absolutely _ridiculous_ notion as he didn’t even know what she looked like! All he knew of her was the scent of her power and the feeling of utter safety and warmth it elicited, but ever since he had awoken healed and whole in Jane’s guest room over a year ago he had even less tolerance for women whose perfume smelled of aught else. Not that he was particularly prone to dalliances before that but these days it was becoming a little ridiculous.

His imagination and intrigue had been captured by Jane’s magical assistant and Loki felt like he didn’t want to leave Midgard without this mystery and Thor’s odd behaviour resolved. Loki felt like he had read everything about Midgardian magic that he had been able to get his hands on, even some grimoirs and sacred texts and yet... he still had no idea who he was looking for.

He stayed at the party until he had grown too weary of company and slipped away as was his particular skill, used thousands of times as Asgardian feasts. He strode into the elevator and leaned back against the mirrored wall, closing his eyes.

It was only as he heard the doors slide shut that they blinked open again. “It’s you!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!!!!!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I didn't post last night! I had a family thing and had to make enough kale pesto to serve twelve people. so much kale omg.

Darcy was having a nice night. Of course the particular fun of getting dressed up with your posse was something Darcy always enjoyed, and it was so rare these days. Natasha, Pepper and Darcy listened to 90’s r&b and munched on popcorn while they got ready in Natasha’s suite, dressing in delectable ensembles of the kind that the other two were _far_ more familiar with than Darcy. Sure Thor liked to bring her presents from Asgard but it wasn’t like she actually had anywhere to wear them, and no matter how earnestly he offered them they just felt like blood money at the end of the day.

The dress Pepper had chosen for her was an emerald green; all of them were. Apparently the theme of the party was something about emeralds or something because green was Loki’s colour or whatever, and Loki was the guest of honour. While the other women wore extremely sexy gowns Darcy’s covered a bit more skin with long bell shaped sleeves (long sleeves were essential for reasons) and reaching down to the ground, though it still had its own sexiness. Once she had climbed into the bespoke lingerie Natasha had brought her and the dress and shoes she felt like she might just be able to do this. At the very least she thought that nobody would be mistaking her for the help as she’d feared.

She shouldn’t have worried though, Pepper, Tony and Natasha never treated her like the servant she was; instead she was their friend. It was kind of amazing and very good for her sanity. She thought she should definitely encourage Jane to visit New York more. 

She ran some magic through her hair to style it in loose curls while Pepper tied on her mask. Natasha smiled, holding up a stick of lipstick. “Just one more detail.”

The party itself was raging by the time they arrived, and with a super babe on each arm Darcy felt like she might actually be able to actually do this. As Pepper peeled off to make sure her event was cruising along smoothly Natasha pulled Darcy to the bar and tried to ply her with liquor, which Darcy declined. “You know I don’t touch that stuff.”

Her friend conceded and brought her some ice tea in a highball glass so that she wouldn’t have to have the same argument with Tony later.

It had only been about an hour however when Pepper found her again telling her that Jane had hit the alcohol _hard_. Darcy knew Jane had been internalising a lot of guilt about Thor’s family issues lately but she hadn’t realised it was enough to get loaded by 9pm at her brother in law’s party like this. “What? Hooow? Who was serving her? I would have thought you’d be all over that?” Pepper winced but suggested that perhaps Jane had somehow got to the Asgardian mead that the supers were drinking. Darcy sighed, and asked where she was.

“Happy and Thor helped her back to your rooms but she’s been calling for you. I’m so sorry Darcy I really wanted you to have a nice time without...”

Darcy gave her friend a hug. “Actually I kind of already did. Getting ready is always my favourite part anyway.”

Pepper hugged her back and walked her to the lifts. When Darcy hesitated, seeing who was inside, she felt Pepper’s completely unexpected and surprisingly strong push in the back, propelling her inside and slamming her hand on the door close button before Darcy could react.

She had a moment to stare in shock before the lone occupant of the elevator opened his beautiful green eyes in surprise. “It’s you!”

Darcy froze, eyes wide as the party’s guest of honour ran his gaze over her person like a parched man seeing water before flicking them back up to meet her own. It was a little hard to think for the awareness of his potent magic filling the small space, which was like the most delicious fresh, woodsy smell, like conifer in the night. She shook her head to snap herself out of it. “Me?” after all, they’d never _actually_ met.

Of course she’d totally seen him before; a little singed around the edges, blue. Tonight he looked even better than all the times before, dressed up for his party in a completely monochrome emerald suit the same shade and tone from collar to socks that fit him like a glove and caused his already striking eyes to pop even more. Darcy spied his matching mask dangling loosely from his fingers.

His hair was out, a little longer these days and in a style that Darcy had seen Thor sport a thousand times when he and Jane had an event to attend, pulled away from his face up the top and adorned only with a few small braids here and there,  allowed to otherwise hang loose down his back, some of his natural curl coming through in a way that had her fingers itching to touch.

It was a _gooood_ look.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so darcy's dress is this action here by alexander mcqueen
> 
> so dreamy.
> 
> loki's suit is entirely based on Rami Malek's divine ensemble at this year's met gala (we won't speak about tom's met gala experiences because reasons) by dior homme but emerald green because of course.
> 
> (rami is such a dreamboat omg)


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> more more more!

Loki drank in the vision of the beautiful woman before him, resplendent in an embroidered velvet gown and matching mask that revealed just enough to make his mouth water. Though the garment wasn’t lacking in fabric or coverage by any means it had a dipping neckline that still managed to keep a myriad of secrets and a generous opening from the hem to allow her freedom of movement. The velvet draped over her decadent body in a way that rendered her form utterly delectable. Even the spill of her hair was enticing, and the way she looked at him from under her mask caused his pants to tighten considerably, making him wish he’d worn some with a little more room.

But all of that was nothing compared to the effect experiencing her magic in person was having on him.

The woman seemed to visibly shake herself out of her own lingering perusal which, he had to admit, the obvious mutual attraction was rather gratifying to see. She turned to select her floor number and then back to face him, her blue eyes as clear as a mountain lake on Alfheim. Her painted mouth quirked and an eyebrow arched from under her mask. “ _Me_?” the mask couldn't hide the attractive flush that trailed downward. 

Loki swallowed thickly. “Yes. I’m sorry it’s only I recognise your magic...from when you tended...after that altercation I was involved with in London.” He managed to get out and the beauty nodded with a small smile.

“Yeah, I got your note. Did it help?”

Loki nodded. _Of course_ she had helped. He had never slept so well in his life, let alone since he’d had his magic stripped. “Yes. Very much. Thank you.” He swallowed.

He didn’t realise that he’d moved or how close they’d become until he was reaching out to softly stroke her cheek under her mask. Her red lips parted in a quiet gasp and then he was kissing her.

His lips brushed hers softly, exploring their shape and she chased his own on the retreat. He closed his eyes as he felt her hand at the back of his neck, burying in his hair and she pulled him down to meet her. Loki gripped her hips and drew her close, revelling in the softness of her clothes and her body pressed into his own. Their lips met again and again.

He couldn’t get enough of how she tasted, how delectably _right_ she felt in his hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MOAR!

Darcy couldn’t _believe_ she was making out with Loki, the _Crown Prince of Asgard_ in a lift in Stark’s tower. She tipped her head back further to allow Loki better access as he licked at the seam of her lips and she opened her mouth to receive him. He tasted _amazing_. She had never before _tasted_ magic, not on the skin of someone else, on their breath, but if this was what kissing a magic user was like she never wanted _anything else_. Everywhere they touched was like electricity. They paused for breath and Darcy ran her hand up his chest, revelling in the speed of his pulse under her fingers. Loki brought his own hand up to capture them, and kissed her fingertips as his eyes met her own once again.

“My Lady, what is your name?”

She opened her mouth to answer when the lift doors opened and someone else beat her too it. _“Darcy?!”_ Jane’s voice was thick with alcohol and tears. Loki’s eyes flicked up over Darcy’s head and his hand closed softly over her wrist protectively. “Darcy what are you doing don’t let him touch youuuu!” Darcy whimpered and she felt her wrist burn as Jane spoke and Loki’s hand passed right through it. He stared at the glowing binding on her wrist and the look of shocked realisation and dismay on his face shot straight through her. She opened her mouth but Jane beat her to it. “Come Onnn Darcy Let’s Leave Him I don’t I don’t WANT you to talk to him. OMG Thor’s going to _kill_ me! Why did you have to talk to him?!”

Muted, and rendered untouchable by her own magic responding to the drunken orders of her human master who _never_ thought hard enough about what she was saying; she had no choice but to back out of the elevator, raising her hand farewell to the most beautiful man she’d ever had the opportunity to kiss, and probably never would again.

The elevator doors slid closed between them and Darcy heard the slam of his fist on metal before it whisked him away from her. She felt Jane’s small hand on her arm as the woman seemed to realise what she’d just done. Again.

“Darcy I’m so sorry Darcy! I’m _so_ sorry!” Jane fell to the floor in a tangle of hair and silk and drunken tears and Darcy numbly helped her up, helping her to their rooms to mix up a tonic to help her to sleep off the mead. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  
> 
>  
> 
>  

Thor was laughing and joking with Steve and Tony when Loki re-entered the party, wearing his colours in a show of brotherly support that was, it was now very clear to him utterly superficial. Still only skin deep and worth nothing for the lies he had been fed. Loki watched the expression on Thor’s face change as it dawned on him why his brother was stalking dangerously through the party towards him. The absolute repulsion Loki felt at his brother’s behaviour seemed to drip off of him. He felt physically sick at what he’d just witnessed. No, worse than that, his very soul rebelled at the criminal actions the mortal Jane had carried out heedlessly in front of him. 

He grabbed Thor by the throat and transported them to a place where they could talk _properly_ without being rude to his kind hosts or breaking their tower. He could hear the crash of waves upon a cliff nearby and the crisp sea breeze helped Loki gather himself and get a handle on his anger, or at the very least it cleared his head a little. “She- her magic is _enslaved_? _YOU_ have been _keeping_ her _-_!” Loki threw a punch at Thor who took it passively, resigned to his brother’s wrath and disgust. “You _knew_ I would try to help her and so you _hid_ her from me? _You_ , who has held a woman bound this entire time? _Usin_ g her magic, _her_ power to your own end? _You_ who I have talked to endlessly for _twelve hundred years_ about what magic is, _how_ magic is. The things you have seen and yet- you knew this and you _still_ -” Loki bit off his sentence, his power crackled between his fingers. “YOU DISGUST ME!”

His brother fell to his knees, his face pleading. “It was an accident. Please Loki listen she didn’t mean to.”

“I’m sure she didn’t. I _saw_ that she didn’t. I saw the _effect_ of her ignorance. I’m sure she has very little comprehension of what precisely she has done, has been doing for _years_. All of that intelligence and she cannot fathom the _horror_ that she is responsible for, or at the very least she has allowed herself not to see it out of guilt, but you- YOU KNOW BETTER.”

Thor swallowed. Loki realised it was raining, which was nothing he wasn’t used to. 

Thor wrung his hands. “I sought our mother’s help. I asked her how to break the binding. Mother hasn’t been able to. She- She was just as angry Loki please doesn’t cut me off like she did. I can’t- brother I cannot bear to live without you again.”

Loki felt like vomiting. “Odin was right. You’re not worthy of the throne. I couldn’t understand why he’d refuse you. I thought you’d come so far but it was I who was wrong this time -that you would betray someone, a friend so fully. you called her your family and yet- You would _choose_ to stay with someone who-” he spat on the ground. his voice was like ice when he spoke his next sentence. “Stay here Thor. You’re banished until that poor woman is made free. You are to serve her. You and Mjolnir will be bound to her service as she is bound to yours until she is made free. Do you understand what I am saying?”

Thor swallowed nodding. He bowed his head. “It is as you say.”

Loki nodded. “I thought you had changed. But it turns out you only changed who you make excuses for.”

He pulled the shadows around him and travelled back to Stark tower, where he made his apologies, left a special parting gift he had brought for Wanda, and took the bifrost home, Midgard leaving a bitter taste in his mouth which had so recently tasted Valhalla.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *trigger warning* this author's note contains stuff about emotional abuse and get's pretty personal so if you'd rather not read my baggage, go ahead and move on <3  
> .  
> .  
> .  
> .
> 
> Kittens I'm super sorry for the delay, after one reader's rather unhelpful comments I hit a wall of emotion I just couldn't get passed until I untangled the thoughts in my head. 
> 
> here's the thing about fic writers. 
> 
> we all write for different reasons. one of those reasons that I known for a fact is known to most of you is that we write to work through our own trauma. 
> 
> I don't really want to go into it. I do see a therapist and a doctor and have some wonderful friends who have been helping me so much; but I also write, and this story is pretty close to the skin for me so when someone critisised my character's response to abuse I took the hit on my person, because though they clearly didn't realise and would probably never have said it if they did, they were critisising _me_. 
> 
> I know a lot of you are super anxious about commenting and I don't want to dissuade you from leaving your thoughts on stories because they are so precious to us writers and I love love love how emotionally you've connected with my stories it is so special to me. telling me what you like, and what made you feel something is awesome and I'm so grateful for your comments.
> 
> which is why I tend to ask you not to leave concrit because these stories are too close to my skin, and often in ways that it's not obvious. I'm far too cowardly to put it out there so blatantly. 
> 
> I just really need you to stop and think before you leave thoughts on someone's fic about abuse when there is any kind of abuse involved. sure, the writer may just be using it for a hint of crisis and dramatic angst to move the plot along but that isn't always the case, so maybe read through your comment a few times before hitting send and maybe don't leave three separate comments criticising someone's response to abuse. maybe.
> 
> even if you've been through the thing.  
> even then. 
> 
> we all have different ways of coping with long term stuff. the human brain and spirit is amazing at protecting ourselves, and sometimes that means smiling through it and acting like the issue isn't there until you can retreat to a safe place where it's ok to be vulnerable. 
> 
> because here's the thing, we (humans) are also really good at avoiding bad shit we've done and not owning up to the pain we've caused if it means looking at how ugly we can really be. most abusers don't think they're abusive at all. they don't want to see it. they think they are good people. they wallow in their guilt and think feeling guilt is enough to make it not be happening. 
> 
> humans are amazing, and humans are really super gross. 
> 
> any way sorry to get so personal but I felt it needed to be said. 
> 
> in the end most of us are trying our best, and then some are copping out big time. 
> 
> the last thing I want to say is that adorableness and smiles and baking someone the best fucking pizza there ever was does not mean that there isn't a very deep and dark well of anger there. it does not mean that at all. 
> 
> anyway I love you all, even the person who left those comments. honestly I know you didn't mean for it to do the thing. I hope you'll forgive me for turning it into a public announcement and not taking it up with you but I just had no energy for that conversation.
> 
> I have one epilogue left, and then hopefully there will be another fic that goes a bit deeper and has a more thorough narration style because I really like this universe and I'm not ready to leave it yet. 
> 
> sorry if this was too much of an overshare but I just needed to get it out of my head and move on. 
> 
> I love you, and I hope you are all safe and warm (I mean it's raining here, I'm sure a heap of you are very warm indeed)


	15. epilogue one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kittens! you are all wonderful darlings and I love love love you. thank you for your kinds words and also I'm so so glad that you love this story. 
> 
> when I wrote it out it was really releasing for me, but I'm so glad it's taken on something extra as it has gone out into the world and into your lives. that's really fucking amazing. 
> 
> I actually counted wrong when I was speaking about how much of this story is left though! this is an epilogue. 
> 
> ...but then there are two more epilogues.
> 
> ...and then another story. so we're good, there is plenty more of this story to tell and I intend to do that. perhaps you would like to subscribe to the series so that you would receive a notification when that begins to go up?

Darcy didn’t sleep that night, she didn’t even cry, she just sat on the floor by her bed staring out of the windows at the city while she absently rubbed her wrist and listened through the wall as Thor came home and he and Jane discussed Thor’s second banishment in a decade. This time he kept his magic, but he didn’t seem too excited about that prospect right at that moment.

It rained for three days.

Jane didn’t call on Darcy that entire time. Instead Darcy sat in her room, watching the thunderclouds and tried to forget about green eyes and lips that tasted like freedom while Natasha tried to convince her to eat something.

She and Pepper were beyond devastated that their plan to get Darcy laid had blown up so spectacularly. Tony of course blamed himself. Which was ridiculous.

On the fourth day the bifrost opened up above the tower. Tony knocked on their apartment door with three excitable blondes smiling over his shoulder and carrying a library’s worth of tomes with them. Thor looked like he had just been rescued.

The Asgardians were apparently mages, specifically magical engineers, who had volunteered at the behest of the Regent to travel to Midgard and aid in the building of a bifrost. Darcy had to admit to being quite amused on discovering what a nerd on Asgard looked like. She smiled for the first time since Loki’s hand passed through her wrist.

Jane gave in and moved her lab to Stark tower and Darcy had _a lot_ more help around the place between JARVIS the friendly AI, Pepper’s undying support and logistical skills and Thor, her brand new assistant.

Jane and the mathletes from space knuckled down straight away and seemed to be making epic progress.

Darcy spent a lot of time hanging out with her friends. And made some new ones.

She did a few guest lecturers for the class that Loki used to teach, and was quite the celebrity because of her skills with an umbrella. She was delighted to see that some of the students had already worked out a way to do it so she organised to come back for a practical lesson another day.

And, she was taking lessons of her own. Apparently having a binding broken by completing a vow wasn't as simple as she had thought. It actually made sense when she thought about it, that after her magic being connected to another's whims more than her own for so long that all that magic flooding back into her will again could get pretty explosive if she so much as sneezed wrong.

So she had been taking lessons with one of the mages every day, relearning how to fully channel magic again and learning control and meditation. 

Of course, as Sigyn said, this was all useful knowledge anyway, if she wished to study magic further at some time in the future. It was like first year magic school stuff. Basically she was Harry Potter. 

It did, in fact make it better. 

Thor told her that Loki could see things from the big ass smart throne on Asgard and she found herself whispering things into the night, or smiling at the sky when nobody was looking.

She wished the throne would work like face time, as she tried to remember what Loki looked like, what he had tasted like. But she understood that Loki wold not be making a move anytime soon, not while she was basically a slave. He was way too kind for that.

She figured she could wait. Probably. Maybe. She was quite patient after all.   

Every once in a while Darcy received a gift that told her that perhaps Loki was waiting too. 

 

Time passed. Darcy didn’t know if this was happiness, but it was a damn sight better than her life in London.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lolololol smart throne


	16. epilogue two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ... a decade later...

Loki was exhausted. He had been in meetings with delegates from the nine realms (including Midgard, at long last) discussing updates to some major trade agreements, including making movements towards starting to craft some between Midgard and the other realms.

Of course it was a delicate business but Midgard had some seriously tradable goods such as chocolate and coffee and cinnamon that the other realms did not have, and so Loki was tentatively optimistic about it. He was just reading through some drafts of the agreements and making notes when he felt a rippling in the odinforce. Norns he needed to find a new name for that -as well as everything else. He certainly wouldn’t be taking an _odins_ leep when the time came but Norns he now knew why his father had had to take time out every once in a while, because the strain of all that power was not something to be scorned.

Odin of course had gone off travelling somewhere and dumped the entire kingdom on him with a serious lack of fanfare compared to the hullabaloo he’d made about Thor all that time ago, which just was about normal really. Loki put his pen down traveled to the rainbow bridge and strode out towards the bifrost where Heimdall stood with his sword at the ready, a steadfast protector as always.

Loki couldn’t be sure but he thought he saw a small creature arrive in the golden dome though the contraption itself remained still. If there was indeed a gate opened it hadn’t come from Asgard. Loki started running.

The creature grew in stature in an explosion of power before they collapsed even as the light dissipated. Heimdall sheathed his sword by his side in order to catch them in his arms.

Loki ran faster.

He skidded to a halt before the gate keeper, but his heart raced on as he stared at the tumble of chestnut curls and limbs in Heimdall’s arms. “Is it her? is it over?” he breathed. Heimdall smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 


	17. actual legit epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> epilogue three

Darcy _loved_ Asgard. She found she fit in really well there. Sure she was out-grown by every three hundred year old kid and treated with kid gloves by most of the Aesir but she had her friends the bifrost mathletes Hoenir, Astrid and Sigyn, and had made friends with others such as Hogun and his sister Vilde since her arrival by Einstein Rosen Bridge that night and consequent recovery so many years ago.

Thor and Jane were there too of course, eventually, and after they’d had a bit of space from each other she found she could talk to them again. They had a lot to rebuild but they were going to, she thought. Family was always hard anyway. Of course hers was practically perfect in every way but one couldn’t help if their in-laws weren’t.)

But mostly she liked Asgard because of Loki.

They’d had a slow courtship, not even counting the decade between their first kiss and the moment she walked through earth’s baby bifrost. She’d had to travel as a cat because it was safer but it worked nevertheless, the binding burning from her and causing her to collapse in pain on arrival.

Of course she’d wanted to jump his bones when he first came to visit her in the healing wing of the palace, wielding a bouquet of the most beautiful flowers she’d ever seen and a golden box full of delicious pastries, but seeing as he was acting king of the universe or whatever she’d had to wait it out a little.

He was kind of worth waiting for though.

She tried to hide her giddy smile as she spotted him walking towards her in the hallway, flanked by about twenty assistants and administrative staff. While he was clearly listening to what they had to say he had a private little smile for her that made her belly do cartwheels -or perhaps that was the kid kicking again, it was hard to tell sometimes. She rubbed her belly absent mindedly.

“ _Daddy_!”

Darcy let go of her daughter’s hand and watched as she ran towards Loki, following behind her at a little more sedate pace. Loki threw Noora up in the air before catching her in his arms and his staff all watched with barely restrained delight as the king cradled the little brunette girl. They still weren’t over the thrilling development of gaining not one but _two_ princesses of the realm in the last decade. They all made way for Darcy to join the family huddle, turning aside to give them space while the King’s consort kissed him on the underside of his jaw and Loki wrapped his arm around her, his large hand as always coming to rest on her pregnant belly, somehow knowing where she’d last been kicked.

“Working overtime are you babe?” she asked cheekily and Loki smiled guiltily.

“Sorry Darling it’s just the very first summit of all _nine_ realms begins tomorrow and there’s just a few more details to wrap up.” He gave Darcy a lingering kiss on the temple and handed Noora back, the girl nuzzling up and kissing her other temple, determined to copy nearly everything her father did.

Darcy kissed him on the lips. “OK well I’ll see you later tonight; we’re on our way to visit Grandma.”

Loki smiled, his face showing some serious contentment as they parted and Darcy made her way with Noora through the cloud of staff and continued on down the hall, Noora watching over her shoulder as her father continued doing his thing.

As she knocked on the golden door of Frigga’s apartments and Noora laughed at her very human habit Darcy found that there was literally nothing that could make her happier... except maybe for the AllDaddy to come back and let her have more Loki time.

But whenever that happened, she knew that Loki had been the best damn king that Asgard had ever seen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhhh thank you all so much for coming along with me on this journey!
> 
> as I've said before I'm writing a follow up (and I've finally made this thing a series so you can go ahead and click subscribe if you want to be alerted when more goes up.) 
> 
> I've also been working on two other fics of different kinds, I was hoping one would be finished so it cold go right up when this was done but they still need endings and shit. 
> 
> I've really enjoyed this fic, and I'm pumped to write more. see you soon hopefully!

**Author's Note:**

> hey so just a heads up in this story loki kind of decided not to do the attack on new york thing and worked with the humans on taking out thanos (who in this universe is apparently way easier to beat because yep). also odin sort of did the depowered banishment thing because of loki's actions in thor 1 (which he kind of should have done that instead of falling asleep back then, to give loki his teenage son some time to work through the news without giving him a kingdom and have him carrying around the kinds of powers that you can use to commit genocide but anyway...) and he has since spent a heap of time with charles xavier and other positive father figures and now works at his school. 
> 
> he also fights with the avengers or x men but not super regularly.
> 
> so he's professor loki who has positive male role models and nerdy friends who totally get it (like tony stark) and teaches magic and how to control your powers to people like wanda maximof and works as a consultant for others like pepper potts and steven strange who were thrown in the deep end. 
> 
> so yep. professor loki...


End file.
